Flattop Jones Sr.
First Appearance: December 21st, 1943. Flattop Jones (real name Floyd Jones) was a contract killer from Cookson Hills, Oklahoma. He married his wife Stiletta while they were both in his late teens and the couple had two children before they broke up. Stiletta joined a circus touring in Europe, and Flattop had little interaction with his children. Flattop was close with his older brother Blowtop, working with him on bank robberies. Flattop barely knew his twin brother Sharptop. His father Poptop used to take him hunting when he was young, but Flattop was later disowned by his father along with most of the rest of his family. One of Flattop's biggest kills was during the Kansas City Massacre when he killed an unknown number of Federal Agents. He was also part of a Nazi espionage ring in WWII. Flattop was hired by Black Marketeers to eliminate Dick Tracy, a job that would pay $5,000. Flattop and his top gunner Ed D. Edd (aka Machine Gun Eddie) lured Tracy into a cab where introductions were made. Flattop was about to pull the trigger, but decided to postpone the deed. Setting up in a hotel, Flattop made Tracy comfortable and contacted Black Marketeer Zola and demanded ten times the pay or would set Tracy free. Unknown to him, Tracy had sent an SOS to the WAC girl downstairs which drew Pat Patton and the police to Flattop's location. Right when Flattop was about to pull the trigger, Tracy grabbed for the gun and Ed was killed by the bullet meant for him. After the struggle, Flattop escaped (January 19, 1944) and Tracy was rescued. On the run, Flattop sought refuge in the house of Bud Jenkins, a boy who had attempted to pick Flattop's pocket on a train. Bud found out who Flattop really was and blackmailed him for money in exchange for his silence. Flattop hid his $50,000 in an old family album in the Jenkins' home. Bud drowned after falling through the ice while using ice-skates he had bought with Flattop's money (February 6th, 1944) and the police needed a photo for the papers. Tracy and company found Flattop's money, but Flattop evaded capture by hiding in the chimney of the duplex. After Flattop was pulled out of the chimney by a neighbor, he escaped and killed a street hawker who recognized him, planting his I.D. on the body to make it look like he himself had been killed. Running afoul of Vitamin Flintheart, Flattop stole a disguise and hid in a theatre. After a shootout outside the theatre, Flattop was seriously wounded with a gunshot through the throat (March 19, 1944). He was taken into custody. Flattop subsequently escaped, thanks to the unwitting assistance of Vitamin Flintheart, who had been arrested for accidentally shooting a bartender with Flattop's gun. They hid on a replica of the Santa Maria in the city lagoon. Attempting to escape the police, Flattop tried to swim through the underpilings of the replica, but was caught on a rusty nail and drowned (May 14th, 1944). A plaque was planted next to the lagoon marking Flattop's death site. In 1978, Flattop's death site was vandalized by a mysterious woman and the plaque was thrown into the lagoon. This woman turned out to be his daughter Angelica who was in town along with her boyfriend, the Brow's Son, to get revenge on Tracy and Policewoman Lizz for the deaths of their fathers and her brother Flattop Jr. In 1985, reporter Wendy Wichel revealed to Dick Tracy that there was new information revealed about Flattop involving Tracy prior to his first documented encounter with Flattop. Tracy revealed Flattop's role in an espionage ring run by a Nazi spy codenamed "Boche" (later revealed to be Pruneface) in which he hired Flattop to eliminate G-Man Jim Trailer and kidnap Professor Roloc Bard, the creator of the Xylon Bomb. It was also revealed by Pat Patton that Flattop was the man who killed an unspecified number of G-Men in the Kanas City Massacre. After Trailer revealed to Flattop that he (Flattop) was aiding the Nazis, Flattop turned on his employer and started an auction between Boche and the U.S. Government for the two prisoners. Flattop accepted Boche's offer of $50,000. Trailer had spoken to Tracy and gave a hidden clue to where Flattop was holding them (the mention of Pearly Gates, referring to St. Peter's church). Tracy and Pat managed to drop in on Flattop before he could kill Trailer. Flattop managed to get away with the Professor and wound Trailer. The Professor was stashed on board the replica of the Santa Maria where Flattop would drown months later. Flattop collected his money from Boche, who warned Flattop that he would kill him if he crossed him again. Flattop left after telling Boche wh ere the Professor was. Years later, Flattop's ghost took over the body of his law-abiding twin brother Sharptop thanks to a New Age enthusiast neice of Gravel Gertie. It is not known for sure if it was really his ghost or not, but Sharptop's mind was eventually freed of "Flattop's" control. A recent flashback storyline depicted Flattop and Blowtop involved in a simple bank robbery that took place before Tracy joined the plainclothes unit. Flattop demonstrated an uncommon level of loyalty for his fellow gang members, criticizing Blowtop for abondoning them to the police. Flattop also commented on Blowtop's lack of a resemblance to the rest of their family. Trivia: *In 2012, Flattop's actual first name was revealed to be "Floyd". This was apparently inspired by the real-life criminal Charles Arthur "Pretty Boy" Floyd, upon whom the character was originally based. *Flattop is widely regarded as Dick Tracy's most famous nemesis. OTHER MEDIA Live-Action TV Series Flattop appeared in Episode 15 of Season 1 of the 1950s "Dick Tracy" TV Series, starring Ralph Byrd. Flattop was played by actor John Cliff. He was not portrayed as deformed or unusual-looking, but wore a distinctive flat-topped hat. The plot of the episode was similar to original Flattop story in the comic strip, with Flattop being commissioned to kidnap and kill Dick Tracy. Flattop (with the help of his heavily-accented henchman Mote) abducted Tracy from his home and took him to a hideout. There, Flattop decided to try to squeeze more money out the man who had hired him, Mr. Namgib ("Big man" spelt backwards). Tracy eventually escaped, shot Mote, and arrested Flattop. 1960s TV Cartoon Flattop was one of the featured villains in the 1960s humorous cartoon version of "Dick Tracy". Flattop was usually paired with B-B Eyes, and had a voice reminiscent of Peter Lorre provided by legendary voice actor Mel Blanc and later Paul Frees. He did not interact with Tracy directly (save for the "Copped Copper Caper"), but was instead foiled by Tracy's "funny" subordinates. Flattop also appeared in an episode of "The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo", produced by UPA, the same comany that made the Dick Tracy cartoon. In the episode "Dick Tracy and the Mob", (original airdate Feb. 6 1965) he was part of the gang assembled by Pruneface that hired Squinty Eyes (a doppelganger of Mr. Magoo, played by Jim Backus) to kill Dick Tracy (voiced by Everett Sloane). In this incarnation Flattop has a more clipped, Chicago-accented voice, provided by actor Howard Morris. Movie Continuity Flattop was a major character in the 1990 feature film "Dick Tracy". He was played by William Forsythe. Flattop was a lieutenant of Al "Big Boy" Caprice, and was feared by other members of the underworld. He often worked with Itchy and Mumbles. Flattop was responsible for shooting 5 members of Lips Manlis' gang at the Seventh Street Garage, which was witnessed by The Kid. He was arrested on suspicion of the crime, but released due to a lack of evidence. He later aided in the kidnapping of Tracy and left him tied up in a basement with an overloaded boiler, expecting that Tracy would die in the explosion. Tracy was rescued by The Kid and resumed his war on crime. Flattop was killed in the climactic New Year's Eve shootout at Club Ritz. ' Known Relatives:' *Poptop Jones (Father) *Blowtop Jones (Older Brother) *Sharptop Jones (Twin Brother) *Auntie Flattop (Sister, possible triplet) *Stiletta Jones (wife) *Flattop Jones Jr. (Son; Deceased) *Angelica "Angeltop" Jones (Daughter; Deceased) *Hi Top Jones (Grandson) *Frizzletop (Cousin) *Dennis O'Copper (Cousin-in-law) *Unnamed Possible Relative who consulted Dr. Beau Tox Known Associates: *Ed D. Edd (main gunman/lieutenant; Deceased) *2 unknown gangsters *Zola (client) *2 unknown Black marketeers (Client) *Vitamin Flintheart *Bud Jenkins (Deceased) *Pruneface (Deceased) Can be Found: *The Complete Dick Tracy, Vol. 8 *The Complete Dick Tracy, Vol. 9 *The Celebrated Cases of Dick Tracy *Dick Tracy: The Complete True Hearts and Tommy Guns Trilogy Category:Deceased Category:Ugly Men Category:Hired Killers Category:Movie Characters